Method and apparatus for shirring flexible material onto cylindrical sections



E. A. BONAMIv METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SHIRRING FLEXIBLE Aug. 19, 1969 MATERIAL ONTO CYLINDRICAL SECTIONS Filed Dec. 29, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEY.

Aug- 1969' E. A. BONAMI 3,461,640

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SHIRRING FLEXIBLE MATERIAL ONTO CYLINDRICAL- SECTIONS Filed Dec. 29, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. ERNEST A. BO/VAMI A TTORNEY.

- Aug. 19, 1969 E. A. BONAMI 3,461,640

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SHIRRING FLEXIBLE MATERIAL ONTO CYLINDRICAL SECTIONS Filed Dec. 29, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 H 9 ll INVENTOR.

ERNEST A. BONAM/ Aug. 19, 1969 E. A. BONAMI METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SHIRRING FLEXIBLE MATERIAL ONTO CYLINDRICAL SECTIONS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. 29, 1965 INVENTOR. ERNEST A. BONAM/ Y/Z P c, 6112.

A TTORNEY.

United States Patent Oflice 3,461,640 Patented Aug. 19, 1969 US. Cl. 533 11 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Apparatus and method for stretching and gathering flexible tubular stockinette type materials onto shirred cylindrical sections having a cross-sectional area large enough to pass product through, such as hams, etc. in a subsequent bagging operation.

This invention relates to expanding and gathering flexible tubular material. More specifically, the invention relates to an apparatus and method for expanding and gathering woven stockinette from a flat coil into shirred cylindrical sections, and to an article of manufacture including a length of gathered material on a forming horn.

The term gathering refers to the shirring of flexible tubular material thereby creating folds in the material and decreasing the longitudinal dimension thereof, and the term expanding refers to enlarging the cross section of such material from a flat form to a stretched or partially stretched circular form.

While the present invention is applicable to gathering numerous types of flexible tubular material, it has been found to be particularly applicable to stockinette, a flexible Woven tubular material, which is commonly employed in the bagging of hams and other meat products.

Historically, the bagging of meat or other products in stockinette or other flexible tubular materials has been a manual operation involving the severing of stockinette from a coil into individual item lengths, drawing each length separately over an alligator horn (to stretch it open), inserting an individual item and closing off the ends of the stockinette. Certain nonelastic impervious bagging materials have heretofore been inflated by blowing air into them; however, such a practice is not applicable to permeable material such as stockinette. A method and means for expanding and shirring long sections of such material, particularly stockinette, prior to the bagging operation would be highly advantageous.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for expanding and shirring sections of a flexible tubular material.

It is another object of this invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for shirring air-permeable tubular material in an expanded cross-sectional shape to facilitate insertion of a product.

It is another object of this invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for shirring stockinette material onto a removable forming member which may be employed as a dispensing horn in a subsequent bagging operation.

It is another object of this invention to provide a shirring apparatus having an improved device for severing flexible shirred tubular material.

Generally, the present invention contemplates pulling a continuous flexible tubular material in a given direction along and about an expansion zone to stretch the material to an enlarged cross-sectional shape. The material is pulled by applying a plurality of frictional gripping forces about the periphery of the tubular material at areas of expansion along said zone. Beyond those areas the expanded material is arrested on a forming means in gathered and compressed or shirred configuration, and finally severed circumferentially when a desired length has been thus gathered. The apparatus for expanding and shirring the material includes a mandrel, aligning and expanding means for feeding a supply of tubular material to the mandrel, pulling means, forming means for receiving shirred material and supporting means therefor. An improved circumferential cutting means is also disclosed.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is'a side elevation of the apparatus of this invention in position for a shirring operation with certain portions shown cut away for clarity;

FIGURE 2 is an end elevation of the apparatus of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the apparatus of FIGURE 1 with certain portions cut away for clarity;

FIGURE 4 is an end elevation of the apparatus of FIGURE 3 taken along line 44 of FIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of the dispensing horn having a length of enlarged stockinette material shirred thereon.

According to the method of this invention a continuous length of flexible material is drawn from a supply thereof; the supply source ordinarily being a drum with the tubular material wound thereon in a flat unexpanded condition. The material is fed in a given direction and outwardly expanded and stretched to an enlarged generally circular cross section by drawing it about a guide zone progressively increasing in diameter in the given direc tion. A smooth end-guide rod and a stretching ring positioned on a mandrel form a suitable guide and exert radial frictional forces to equally stretch the material as it travels in the given direction.

A plurality of frictional gripping forces to pull material from a supply spool are continuously applied about the expanded periphery of the tubular material to draw it in the given direction along the guide zone and across the mandrel. The gripping forces are applied about the end of the mandrel opposite the stretching ring and also serve to push the material on to a forming means, beyond the mandrel in the given direction, whereon the leading edge of the material is arrested. and the following portions are pushed to bunch and gather, or shirr, the enlarged tubular material.

After a desired length of material has been thus gathered, it is then severed from the supply thereof, preferably by scribing circumferentially at a location just beyond (in the given direction) the point of application of the gripping forces.

Thereafter the severed length of shirred material is retained on its forming means and bodily removed from the shirring device for transport to a location where ham bagging, or the like, is practiced. A replacement forming means is then immediately implaced, and a succeeding length of tubular material shirred thereon by repeating the foregoing steps. Preferably the forming means is a dispensing horn applicable to the bagging operation for accepting through its interior the hams to be bagged.

An apparatus which has been devised for carrying out the method of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The apparatus, as viewed in FIGURE 1, includes a frame 10, and to the right of the frame is a large spool (not shown) of flattened tubular material carrying suflicient material to be considered a continuous supply adequate to load a large number of forming means. The illustrated apparatus was devised particularly for relatively large diameter stockinette although, of course, other flexible tubular materials can be expanded and shirred by the apparatus.

An aligning means generally 12 comprising an alignment ring 14 mounted on a support member 16, is provided to centrally align stockinette with a mandrel 18 regardless of the amount of material remaining on the spool (not shown). Member 16 is attached to frame at one end thereof. The alignment ring 14 is preferably made of nylon or some comparable synthetic plastic having a low coefiicient of friction and formable into smooth surfaces. Additionally the aligning means includes a guide tube 20, concentrically attached to mandrel 18 by a bolt 22. Guide tube 20 terminates in a smooth surfaced hemispherical nose 26.

The main portion of the length of mandrel 18 has a cross sectional shape of a regular polygon. A stretching ring 28 which is part of the mandrel and is located at one end thereof allows the stockinette to be pulled and stretched without damage to the latter. The mandrel is not attached to frame 10, but is fioatingly supported within four stockinette pulling means generally 40.

Stockinette is pulled from the supply pool through the alignment ring 14, over the guide tube 20, and expanded over the stretching ring 28. Subsequently, it is drawn beyond the stretching ring 28 across the chord-like surfaces of the mandrel 18 and from thereunder the gathering or pulling means 40. Four stockinette pulling means 40 are provided in the illustrated embodiment as may be best seen in FIGURE 2.

The pulling means 40 each include a cylindrical idler roller 42 and a cylindrical driven roller 44 which are spaced in a direction parallel to the drum axis (as shown in FIGURE 1). Each of the rollers engages a substantial portion of the surface of the stockinette material to frictionally grip the material against the smooth surface of the mandrel. The idler rollers 42 provide for an even distribution of force on the stockinette. The driven rollers are preferably coated with a material having a smooth surface having a high coefficient of friction such as polymerized chloroprene.

Each pulling means 40 includes a longitudinal bar 48 having arms 49. A pair of mounting brackets 50 are attached at opposite ends of the bar 48. Each pulling means 40 is, in turn, attached to a superstructure 52 that is iounted on frame 10 to surround the mandrel 18.

Referring to FIGURE 2, the bottom and left side pulling means of the illustrated embodiment are rigidly attached to the superstructure while the upper and right side pulling means are spring mounted. The bars 48 of the spring mounted pulling means are pivotally mounted on the superstructure 52 somewhat like a seesaw so that some yaw and pitch movement of the mandrel may be possible. This allows proper alignment of the mandrel and also allows for sufficient transverse spacing to feed the stockinette thereacross and to adjust for minor changes in the position of the rest of the apparatus.

Each spring-mounted pulling means, as shown in FIG- URE 1, includes a U-shaped plate 54 which is fixedly attached to the superstructure 52 by bolts 58. Centrally located along the bar 48 and extending perpendicularly therefrom are a pair of arms 49. A pin 56 (shown in FIGURES 1 and 3) is fixedly attached to the center of bar 48 and protrudes outwardly through a hole in the U-shaped plate '54. A spring 57 seated on the U-shaped plate 54 exerts a force against the head of pin 56 tending to move bar 48 outwardly from mandrel 18.

Two adjustable spring plunger set screws 55 establish the maxmium outward position of the bar 48 respecting the axis of the mandrel 18 and tend to urge it inwardly. The bar 48, however, may pivot about a pin 80 which extends between sides of the rigidly attached U-shaped plate 54 through slots 62 of the bar arms 49. The pin 68 prevents longitudinal movement of the pulling means and allows the bar to pivot through a limited angle.

Each pulling means includes a po'vver-driven roller 44 (the left end roller as seen in FIGURE 1) connected to flexible shafting 66 which in turn is driven by a motor 68. All driven rollers are interconnected by shafting so as to operate at identical speed.

A forming means generally 70 is mounted on frame 10 to receive enlarged stockinette advanced past the mandrel 18 by the pulling means 40. Preferably the forming means comprises a dispensing horn 71, a support member 72, and a carriage 73. The dispensing horn is of hollow cylindrical shape and preferably has flanges 74, at one end, by which it is demountably attached to the support member on bayonet type fasteners 80, or the like. The flanges also serve to halt the forward edge of the stockinette material so that following material becomes gathered and shirred upon the horn, which also maintains the stockinette in an expanded configuration.

The dispensing horn 71 is demountably held by bayonet pins 80, cooperating with lock slots 81 on the flanges 74. The pins are secured to the supporting member 72 which in turn is slideably mounted on a pair of rails 83. The carriage 73 includes rails 83 and a pair of cantilever arms 84 extending from an upright turret member 86. The turret 86 is mounted on a turntable 88 rotatable in a horizontal plane. The turntable 88 is in turn reciprocably mounted by bearings 90 and slideably supported upon two horizontal rails 92 extending above frame 10. The bearings are slideable upon the rails 92 toward and away from the mandrel 18 and pulling means 40. The carriage 73 is thus rotatable and also reciprocable longitudinally of the mandrel.

A feed screw 94 mounted on the carriage 73 is engageable with a split nut 95 on member 72 to provide rectilinear motion of the member 72 (and the horn 71 carried thereon) relative to the carriage 73. Thus the horn is further reciprocable relative to mandrel 1'8 beyond the movement limits of the carriage 73. An operating handle 96 is provided to engage and disengage the split nut 95 with the feed screw 94. In the embodiment illustrated, a motor 97 drives the feed screw 94 to withdraw the horn 71 from mandrel 18 (moving the horn 71 and its support member 72 to the left as shown in FIGURE 1) during the gathering operation. A limit switch 98 actuated by rearward movement of member 72 stops the motor 97, and also stops motor 68 of the pulling means 40.

A locking arm 99 is provided to lock the carriage 73' on the rails 92.

The stockinette horn is placed in a loading position by first mounting it on the support member 72, then turning the table 88 toward mandrel 18 and advancing the carriage 73 forwardly as far as the slide shafts 92 permit. The carriage 73 is then locked on the rails 92 with the locking arm 99, and horn 71 is then further advanced by disengaging the split nut 95 and manually pushing the member 72 and horn 71 into mandrel 18.

Preferably the supporting member 72 is moved forward sufficiently to telescope the horn slightly into the mandrel 18. Thus when the pulling means 40 are operated, stockinette will be pulled from the spool (not shown) about the mandrel 18 and will slide onto the horn 71. As the stockinette continues to run upon the horn it will be forced to the rear end thereof against the flange 74 and bunched and gathered. During gathering operations, the split nut 95 is engaged with the feed screw 94 which is driven by a motor 97. Thus the horn is moved away from the mandrel 18 at a rate coordinated to the accumulation of stockinette on the horn. The rearward movement of the horn is stopped by a switch 98 which also terminates the gathering operation. (Rearward movement of the horn 71 and support member 72 may alternatively be accomplished without a motor by pressure exerted by the pulling means 40 acting through the bunched stockinette.)

The bunched and gathered stockinette is then severed from the continuous supply thereof at the receiving end of horn 71 preferably by a cutting means generally 100, attached to carriage 73 as shown in FIGURE 3. The cutting means, also illustrated in FIGURE 4, includes a rotatable knife shaft 102 having a handwheel 104 attached to one end thereof. Attached to an opposed end of shaft 102 for rotation therewith is a cam element 106. A back plate 108 is journaled for free rotation on shaft 102 behind cam 105 (as seen in FIGURE 4). A knife 112 is held between the cam 106 and back plate 108 pivoted about a pin 114 attached to back plate 108. The knife arm has a pin 116 extending from both sides thereof. The forward portion of the pin is constrained within a slot 118 on the cam element 106; and the rear end of the pin will come into contact with an edge of back plate 108 to limit the extent of counterclockwise pivotal movement thereon.

The knife shaft 102 also terminates as a positioner bearing 130 useful in aligning the dispensing horn 71 with the mandrel 18. This bearing mates with a socket 132 positioned centrally of the discharge end of the mandrel on a tripod web 136 extending from the opposite end of the mandrel 18. When a new horn is mounted on supporting member 72 and the carriage 73 swung into alignment with the mandrel, the carriage is advanced to the right (in FIGURE 1) until the positioner bearing 130 is received in the socket. Then the supporting member 72 is advanced further on rails 83 until the born 71 is telescoped sufliciently within the spreader drum so that stockinette can slide freely onto the horn. Movement of the fioatingly supported spreader drum towards the born when the shirring means are operated is thus prevented.

From the description above, it can be seen that rotation of shaft 102 to move the cam element 106 in a counterclockwise direction (as seen in FIGURE 4) will extend the knife blade 112 from a retracted inoperative position, as shown by the dotted lines in FIGURE 4, to a cutting position at the perimeter of the horn 71, shown in solid line in the same figure. In the extended cutting position the knife blade will cut the stockinette at the receiving edge of the horn 71. This is undertaken only when the horn 71 has been fully loaded. After one or more revolutions of the knife in cutting position is completed, the operator reverses the rotation of the hand wheel to pivot the knife blade inwardly to its retracted position. Frictional engagement of the knife with the cam 106 and the back plate 108 restrains the knife from movement out of the retracted position.

This location of the cutting means offers several unique advantages in severing stretched flexible tubular material. The horn and also the mandrel 18 tend to hold the tubular material adjacent the receiving end of the horn in a tubular shape with the material in tension. A blade with cutting surfaces rotated about the periphery of the material easily severe the material evenly and without excessive stretching thereof. Also, this location of the cutting enables the stockinette to be out exactly at the end of horn 71 while leaving an absolute minimum of material extending beyond the mandrel 18. Thus it is easy to start another shirring operation since the tubular material does not need to be again pulled by hand through the alignment means and over the mandrel.

After severing the stockinette, the operator withdraws and pivots the carriage 73 approximately 90 and removes the horn 71 from the support member 72. Thereafter a new horn is mounted on the supporting member 72 and then pivoted and advanced into the mandrel 18.

FIGURE 5 illustrates a hollow rigid self-sustaining dispensing horn 71 having a length of flexible enlarged tubular material 140 shirred thereon. The horn is hollow-providing a passageway longitudinally within the horn to allow passage therethrough of a product to be bagged. A relatively long length of the tubular material is gathered in a plurality of annular folds from end to end of the horn. The horn flange 74 may be of circular (as illustrated) or elliptical shape. The slots 81 provide a means for attaching the horn to the shirring apparatus and to a bagging apparatus.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the invention as hereinbefore set forth may be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, and therefore only such limitations should be imposed as are indicated in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A method of expanding and shirring flexible tubular material of a given diameter comprising: drawing portions of a continuous tube or flexible material from a supply thereof in a given direction; expanding the tubular material from the given diameter to a larger diameter by exerting radial frictional forces along a given path to stretch said material as it travels in said direction; applying in said direction a plurality of frictional gripping forces about the periphery of said expanded tubular material to draw said material over said path and push said expanded tubular material onto a forming means; and arresting the leading edge of said material, whereby the following portions of said expanded material are bunched and gathered upon said forming means.

2. The method of claim 1 including the step of severing the bunched and gathered material from the supply thereof.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the material is stockinette and is severed at an expanded position spaced downstream of said gripping forces, and the severed length of bunched and gathered stockinette is retained on said forming means for use during the subsequent bagging operation.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the stockinette is gathered upon a dispensing horn and is severed from the supply thereof by scribing circumferentially at an end of said horn.

5. An apparatus for shirring tubular material comprising: a frame; a mandrel for increasing the diameter of flexible tubular material encompassing said mandrel and conveyed in frictional contact therewith in a given direction; alignment means attached to one end of said frame for directing a supply of tubular material about said mandrel; a plurality of pulling means spaced about the periphery of said mandrel for floatingly supporting said mandrel and for exerting frictional gripping forces in said direction on said material, whereby said material is pulled through said alignment means and about said mandrel, said pulling means attached to said frame and spaced in said given direction from said alignment means; and forming means attached to said frame at an end opposite said alignment means for arresting movement of said tubular material from said pulling means, whereby said tubular mate-rial is bunched and. gathered on said forming means.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said pulling means comprise an idler roller and a driven roller and certain of said pulling means are rigidly attached to said frame and certain of said pulling means are pivotally spring mounted on said frame.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the forming means comprise a carriage, said carriage being rotatably mounted on said frame and reciprocable thereto relative to said mandrel; a support member slidably' attached to said carriage for reciprocation into and out of said mandrel; and a flanged cylindrical horn detachably mounted on said support member, said horn being insertable within said mandrel.

8. The apparatus of claim 5 including cutting means attached to said forming means for serving bunched and gathered tubular material on said forming means from the supply thereof.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein said cutting means includes a knife attached to said forming means and operable in a position adjacent the discharge end of said mandrel; means for rotating said knife in a plane adjacent said discharge end to circumferentially scribe the enlarged stockinette material; and means for extending said knife to a cutting position and retracting said knife to an inoperative position.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the forming means comprisez'a carriage, said carriage being rotatably mounted on said frame and reciprocable thereon relative to said mandrel; a support member slidably attached to said carriage for reciprocation into and out of said mandrel; and a flanged cylindrical horn detachably mounted on said support member, said horn being insertable Within said mandrel.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein said cutting means includes a rotatable knife shaft extending from said carriage and protruding through said horn to a point adjacent the receiving end thereof, a cam element attached to the protruding end of said shaft for rotation therewith, a plate journaled for free rotation on said shaft, a knife pivotably mounted on said plate, a follower attached to said knife and engaging said cam, whereby rotation of said cam in one direction pivots said knife into a cutting position at the perimeter of the receiving end of said horn and counter rotation of said cam retracts said knife to an inoperative position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1933 Brennan 53-255 X 2/1950 Flomcn 22328 X 10/1953 Grady 53450 8/1935 Dietrich 99176 X 11/1952 Blake 53256 X 11/1955 Blizzard 99-176 X 5/1961 lvlatecki 99-176 5/1965 Ives 17 45.1 8/1965 Riegler 1745.1

TRAVIS S. MCGEHEE, Primary Examiner R. L. SPRUILL, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

